With some seven weeks left until casting our votes and deciding who should run Hungary in the next four years, Hungary’s parliamentary election campaign is well under way, with several parties coming forward with their election programs and promises. Investor attention is mostly centered around the viability of the plans and mostly on the agenda of Fidesz, the party generally tipped to win.

However, the election campaign has never missed a chance to smear — as the “poem” disclosed here, written in rhyming couplets, shows. It doesn’t say which party it came, from but the disclosure method suggests it may be the far-right Jobbik party, which wasn’t immediately available to comment. I received it from a gmail address, which is typical of Jobbik — I receive such emails about the party from gmail addresses nearly every day. Jobbik has gained sizeable support not least because of its direct-marketing campaign methods.

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Jobbik and its sympathizers march in a village

Here I will give you a rough translation of the piece so that you could get a feel of it, but forgive me if it falls short of literary quality or rhymes. Instead, whenever necessary, I will add some background in brackets so that you could understand some of the allusions.

Hey,

“My name is [current Prime Minister Gordon] Bajnai, and you are there the country’s beasts of burden. My nickname is Goosey Gordon [a reference to Mr. Bajnai's previous job], I am protected by every cordon.

[Former Prime Minister] Frankie [Ferenc] Gyurcsany is my best friend, therefore we have money at hand. No curse reaches me from far below, I am pooping on you from high above. I have no conscience, that’s my biggest asset.

There won’t be any problems, I became the biggest trickster. Our rights are endless, and we’ll make use of that for sure. You have no rights whatsoever, I have told you [the austerity measures] will hurt you.

We have brains endless to leave you pennyless. Nothing is enough for us, who is no pal is only a ragtag. The Pannon [other word for Hungary] Puma didn’t work? Some other blurb may do better. Our economy is roaring ahead? We can hardly stand on our feet.

Hungarians can never get ahead, anybody may frek us up. And if it gets cold in winter, you will freeze and kick the bucket. You’re saying you’re dying of famine – you could have done that much earlier. You’ll get a nice bouquet on your grave, and we, meanwhile, will sell off the country.

The only thing left to do for you is to go abroad to find a living. To replace you, Israelis will be coming to Hungary in hordes. You won’t need to reproduce; they will proliferate by and by. They will get on well with the Gypsies; sort out all issues and problems. I hope you will cast your vote in favor of us, goodbye and have a nice day!”

All this could be taken lightly, as just some mocking of the current ruling party. But the thing is that Jobbik, if this email indeed came from them, would surely make it to Parliament, with their support at 10% among decided voters, based on the latest poll of pollster Szazadveg. One could argue, meanwhile, that once Jobbik has made it to the European Parliament, they have already gained legitimacy on the political scene.

And it remains to be seen how Jobbik’s support increases as people turn away from its arch-rival ruling Socialists and its largest opposition Fidesz. The hopeless Socialist campaign –- since the Socialists look the sure losers of the helm of the country — and the similarly traditional and so far blank Fidesz campaign –- since Fidesz’s win looks like a done deal -– are simply pushing the large numbers of undecided voters into Jobbik’s arms.

Should Jobbik gain considerable representation in Hungary’s next government, it will be interesting to see whether that will push Fidesz and the Socialists to team up and vote together to pass bills that require the approval of two-thirds of Parliament to pass.

Comments (5 of 9)

Further proof of the higher intelligence of the Hungarian population: not only are the very smartest able to swat up the Nobel Prizes, create and run Hollywood, escape from a locked safe at the bottom of New York harbour, invent most of the icons of the age from the atom bomb to the computer.... the fascist lunkheads can write reasonably effective poetry in rhyme and metre!

Having said that, I do fear for Hungary, since these repellent sentiments are (in my non-scientific polling) shared by a good third of the electorate.

11:30 am March 2, 2010

Limey in Budapest wrote:

Actually Incredulous I believe that Miss Feher is based in Hungary and simply writes for the WSJ from here. Therefore as a resident journalist in Hungary she would be on their mailing list. You are right to posit that Jobik is not mailing to the WSJ directly. After all they hardly know where the US is let alone care what the US thinks. They are only interested in what they can accomplish here in Hungary.

You are right to request a factual list of their aims and a copy of their electon platform. It would make interesting reading given their reputation in Hungary. The photo of the black boots at the top will give you a hint.

11:00 pm February 25, 2010

Incredulous wrote:

As did Vichy France. Your point being?

2:10 pm February 25, 2010

Stany wrote:

This is not at all surprising , Eastern Europe willfully collaborated with Nazi Germany during WW2 .

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